Due to heredity, injury, or disease, part or all of the large or small intestine of a person may have to be surgically removed, and the stoma (the remaining end of the large intestine or the small intestine) is brought up to the abdominal surface as an ostomy (a surgically created opening in the body for the discharge of bodily wastes). An ostomy pouch is then placed over the ostomy to collect the bodily wastes. The contents of an ostomy pouch are often a good breeding environment for bacteria, which generate odors. A properly-fitted ostomy pouch generally neither leaks nor smells but the pouch will eventually become full so one must periodically open the tail of the pouch (open end pouch), or detach the pouch from the ostomy (closed end pouch), and then empty the collected bodily wastes from the pouch.
During this emptying process the pouch may not be covering the ostomy, or the tail of the pouch may be open, so any odorous gases in the pouch may escape into the surrounding environment. A deodorizer liquid or tablet is often placed in the ostomy pouch, but the deodorizer only serves to mask, and does not always eliminate, the odors. Furthermore, any deodorizer previously contained in the pouch exits the pouch upon emptying along with the effluent, requiring the reapplication of a deodorizer each time the pouch is emptied.
Thus, there is a need for a deodorizer device configured to eliminate the odors associated with ostomy pouches or other containers configured to collect effluent (e.g., bodily waste).